Image_1_miR-335 Acts as a Tumor Suppressor and Enhances Ionizing Radiation-Induced Tumor Regression by Targeting ROCK1.jpeg

Recent development of integrative therapy against melanoma combines surgery, radiotherapy, targeted therapy, and immunotherapy; however, the clinical outcomes of advanced stage and recurrent melanoma are poor. As a skin cancer, melanoma is generally resistant to radiotherapy. Hence, there is an urgent need for evaluation of the mechanisms of radioresistance. The present study identified miR-335 as one of the differential expression of miRNAs in recurrent melanoma biopsies post-radiotherapy. The expression of miR-335 declined in melanoma tissues compared to the adjacent tissues. Moreover, miR-335 expression correlated with advanced stages of melanoma negatively. Consistent with the prediction of STARBASE and miRDB database, miR-335 targeted ROCK1 via binding with 3′-UTR of ROCK1 directly, resulting in attenuation of proliferation, migration, and radioresistance of melanoma cells. The authors validated that overexpression of miR-335 enhanced X-ray-induced tumor regression by B16 mouse models. Briefly, the present findings gained insights into miR-335/ROCK1-mediated radiosensitivity and provided a promising therapeutic strategy for improving radiotherapy against melanoma.</p

Flow Diagram for the Selection of Studies.

<p>Flow Diagram for the Selection of Studies.</p

Characterization of Flowerlike Silicon Particles Obtained from Chemical Etching: Visible Fluorescence and Superhydrophobicity

Flowerlike silicon particles are obtained by chemical etching of polycrystalline silicon polyhedrons using a mixture of hydrofluoric acid and nitric acid. The etched flowerlike particles show stable bright red photoluminescence under UV irradiation. The formation of pores with diameters of 3, 5.5, and 20 nm is revealed during etching. The etched particles exhibit superhydrophobic behavior with a contact angle of 158° because of the sharp tips of their “petals”. The source silicon polyhedrons are shown to possess radial grain boundaries. Preferential etching along the radial grain boundaries of the polyhedrons is thought to be the key reason for the formation of flowerlike porous silicon particles

Efficacy and Cardiotoxicity of Liposomal Doxorubicin-Based Chemotherapy in Advanced Breast Cancer: A Meta-Analysis of Ten Randomized Controlled Trials

<div><p>Background</p><p>Various trials have compared the efficacy and toxicity of liposomal doxorubicin-based chemotherapy with the conventional formulation of doxorubicin although arriving at inconsistent conclusions. To derive a conclusive assessment of the efficacy and cardiotoxicity associated with chemotherapy, we performed a meta-analysis by combining data from all eligible randomized controlled trials.</p><p>Methods</p><p>We used the PubMed database to identify relevant studies published through December 28, 2014. Eligible studies included randomized controlled trials directly comparing the efficacy and cardiotoxicity of liposomal doxorubicin-based chemotherapy with conventional doxorubicin in advanced breast cancer with adequate data. Odds ratios (ORs) or hazard ratios (HRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were used to assess the efficacy and cardiotoxicity in a fixed-effects or random-effects model.</p><p>Results</p><p>Ten randomized controlled trials containing efficacy and data from a total of 2,889 advanced breast cancer patients were included in this report. Liposomal doxorubicin-based chemotherapy was associated with a significant reduction in the risk of cardiotoxicity (OR = 0.46, 95% CI 0.23 to 0.92, p = 0.03) and a significant improvement in the overall response rate (ORR) (OR = 1.25, 95% CI 1.02 to 1.52, p=0.03) compared with conventional doxorubicin. An apparent improvement in progression-free survival (PFS) for patients treated with liposomal doxorubicin-based chemotherapy was noted; however, this difference was not significant (HR = 1.14, 95% CI 0.96 to 1.34, p = 0.12). In terms of overall survival (OS), no significant difference between the two chemotherapy regimens was noted (HR = 1.00, 95% CI 0.91 to 1.10, p = 0.93).</p><p>Conclusion</p><p>The results of this meta-analysis suggest that liposomal doxorubicin-based chemotherapy is associated with a significant improvement in the ORR and a significant reduction in the risk of cardiotoxicity.</p></div

Forest plot of cardiotoxicity comparison between two groups.

<p>Forest plot of cardiotoxicity comparison between two groups.</p

Forest plot of PFS comparison between two groups.

<p>Forest plot of PFS comparison between two groups.</p

Forest plot of OS comparison between two groups.

<p>Forest plot of OS comparison between two groups.</p

Forest plot of ORR comparison between two groups.

<p>Forest plot of ORR comparison between two groups.</p

Electrocatalytic NO Reduction to NH₃ on Mo₂C Nanosheets

Electrocatalytic reduction of NO to NH3 (NORR) emerges as a promising route for achieving harmful NO treatment and sustainable NH3 generation. In this work, we first report that Mo2C is an active and selective NORR catalyst. The developed Mo2C nanosheets deliver a high NH3 yield rate of 122.7 μmol h–1 cm–2 with an NH3 Faradaic efficiency of 86.3% at −0.4 V. Theoretical computations unveil that the surface-terminated Mo atoms on Mo2C can effectively activate NO, promote protonation energetics, and suppress proton adsorption, resulting in high NORR activity and selectivity of Mo2C

Synergistic Effects in Nanoengineered HNb₃O₈/Graphene Hybrids with Improved Photocatalytic Conversion Ability of CO₂ into Renewable Fuels

Layered HNb₃O₈/graphene hybrids with numerous heterogeneous interfaces and hierarchical pores were fabricated via the reorganization of exfoliated HNb₃O₈ nanosheets with graphene nanosheets (GNs). Numerous interfaces and pores were created by the alternative stacking of HNb₃O₈ nanosheets with limited size and GNs with a buckling and folding feature. The photocatalytic conversation of CO₂ into renewable fuels by optimized HNb₃O₈/G hybrids yields 8.0-fold improvements in CO evolution amounts than that of commercial P25 and 8.6-fold improvements than that of HNb₃O₈ bulk powders. The investigation on the relationships between microstructures and improved photocatalytic performance demonstrates that the improved photocatalytic performance is attributed to the exotic synergistic effects via the combination of enhanced specific BET surface area, increased strong acid sites and strong acid amounts, narrowed band gap energy, depressed electron–hole recombination rate, and heterogeneous interfaces